Monthly Archives: February 2016

My dad told me this story many years ago while I was in high school. It had such an impact on me that it’s etched in my memory. There had always been two very important people in a particular family: a father and his one son. They were revered by grandchildren, great-grandchildren, great-great-grandchildren, aunts, uncles, […]

Philippians 4:13 I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me. Growing up, my Dad would not allow us to say “I can’t”. This was like saying a bad word. From my most early memories, I remember my Dad saying “Don’t say I can’t. You can do all things through Jesus Christ. He can […]

The presence and role of “Dad” plays an important role in their children’s development. The presence of both parents with low conflicts between them show a high level of warmth to their children even when divorced, and can lower their children’s internal problems (Chen, 2009). Fathers who are emotionally and psychologically well-adjusted can affect their […]

Daddies & Daughters: Making Your Kids A Hobby I know how lucky I was to have the stability of both a mother and father growing up. Being a divorce attorney for the last eleven years, I know that truth about my life now more than ever. My mother was lucky enough to be able […]

Oct. 19, 2015 is a day I will never forget. That’s the day my daughter Savannah was born. When I first saw her, I cried. I knew that no matter what I do in life, I will always be her father. I knew I have to set the tone for all of her dealings with […]

Some of my most treasured memories growing up are from working with my dad. Though my dad was well-educated and hardworking, he had to work a lot of low-paying jobs to make ends meet. When I was old enough, I went to help him with his handyman gig on the weekends. We would load up his Ford […]

I never knew my biological father. On my original birth certificate, under the space where it says FATHER, the square is void of a name, the word UNKNOWN typed there like some dark proclamation. Years later, after I was adopted, I got a new birth certificate—with my new father’s name in the place where once […]

“When are you going to write a book so you can buy me a Cadillac?” With a smile, my dad has asked me this question numerous times. Usually I look at him in bewilderment, because my dream to be a published author is a scary one. Yet, my dad has always believed in my love […]

My dad turns 86 soon. As his birthday approaches, I am conscious of how appreciative I am of the impact he has had on my life. He has been an active part of my life, and he has taught me vital lessons. Without his guidance, love, and patience, I would have been an entirely different […]

When I think about great fathers, I immediately pause and give thanks to God because I get to experience the privilege of raising my own sons with the greatest father I know, my husband. Watching him with my sons is one of the most beautiful things in my life wherein I see God’s glory and […]

My mom’s second husband adopted me when I was two, but we only lived together for three years after that. They got divorced, and suddenly had a see-you-on-the-weekend dad. But, from those early years, when we hung out alone until he got remarried, my memories are happy and strong. And the most vivid ones are […]

One of the most poignant questions that has transgenerationally been suspended in the minds and hearts of families of color is: how can I be a father when I have never been a son? More often in not, in the African American culture, there is an absenteeism of fathers. The reasons are obvious — due to lengthy […]

I was not raised by my parents but by my great, great grandmother, Lula Clark McGrady, whom I miss and love very, very much; she was my EVERYTHING and took great care of me – she died in 1973 at the age of 106. I moved to South Florida at the age of 17, when […]

“Uncle Donnie? Can you come out and play?” What do you do when your two-year old nephew comes to live with you because his father didn’t want to be a father? I faced that dilemma when I was still a teen, 14 years-old. Run and hide? Refer him to someone else? I never considered either […]